संत साहित्य
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संत साहित्य · Tukārām · Abhanga 819 of 4582

Abhanga 819

English: Vatsa — runs — dhēnu — pāṭhī-lāgīm — prīti — anga — āyur-bhāva.

When calf runs, cow runs after; prīti is natural-anga — and you have to recognize this register
When abandoned can't be united, it kicks back — and you accept this image
When no need for āgraha; anubhava itself tells — and you receive this final image

The verse

वत्स पळे धेनु धांवे पाठीलागीं । प्रीतीचा तो अंगीं आयुर्भाव ॥१॥ शिकविलें काय येईल कारणा । सूत्र ओढी मना आणिकांच्या ॥ध्रु.॥ सांडिलें तें नाहीं घेत मेळवितां । म्हणऊनि लाता मागें सारी ॥२॥ तुका म्हणे आग्रह करावा न लगे । सांगतसे अंगें अनुभव ॥३॥

Literal translation

English: Vatsa — runs — dhēnu — pāṭhī-lāgīm — prīti — anga — āyur-bhāva. Taught — kāraṇā — sūtra — pulls — others' minds. Abandoned — doesn't unite — kicks back. Tuka says: āgraha — no need — body — anubhava.

मराठी: वत्स पळे, धेनु धांवे पाठी-लागीं — प्रीतीचा तो अंगीं आयुर्भाव. शिकविलें काय येईल कारणा — सूत्र ओढी मना आणिकांच्या. सांडिलें तें नाहीं घेत मेळवितां — म्हणऊनि लाता मागें सारी. Tuka म्हणे: आग्रह करावा न लगे — सांगतसे अंगें अनुभव.

Word-by-word gloss
Marathi Meaning
वत्स पळे धेनु धांवे पाठीलागीं "vatsa — runs — dhēnu — runs after"
प्रीतीचा तो अंगीं आयुर्भाव "prīti — anga — āyur-bhāva"
शिकविलें काय येईल कारणा "taught — for cause"
सूत्र ओढी मना आणिकांच्या "sūtra — pulls — others' minds"
सांडिलें तें नाहीं घेत मेळवितां "abandoned — doesn't unite"
म्हणऊनि लाता मागें सारी "kicks back"
आग्रह करावा न लगे "āgraha — not need"
सांगतसे अंगें अनुभव "body — tells — anubhava"

What it means

A calf-runs-cow-runs-after-prīti-natural-taught-not-effective-abandoned-kicks-back-no-need-āgraha-anubhava-tells abhang. Prīti-is-natural-not-taught register. Three claims:

  1. वत्स-पळे-धेनु-पाठी-लागीं — प्रीति-अंगीं-āyur-bhāva — शिकविलें-कारणा-नाही — sūtra-ōḍhī-mind. Calf-cow-prīti-natural-taught-not-effective-claim. The vatsa runs — the dhēnu runs after-on-its-back — that prīti is in the anga, the āyur-bhāva (life-natural-feeling); what is taught doesn't come-for-the-cause — the sūtra (thread) pulls others' minds. Mother-cow-runs-after-calf-naturally-not-by-teaching*.

  2. सांडिलें-न-घेत-मेळवितां — लाता-मागें-सारी. Abandoned-can't-be-united-kicks-back-claim. What has been abandoned (sāṇḍilē) — when one tries to-unite-it again — it doesn't get-united; therefore it kicks-back (lātā māgē sārī — kicks-the-feet-back). Once-abandoned-can't-be-forced-back. (The image: a calf abandoned by the mother — when one tries to bring it back, it kicks. So-too with prīti — once-lost, it can't be forced.)

  3. Tuka: āgraha-न-लगे — अंगें-अनुभव-सांगतसे. No-āgraha-anubhava-tells-claim. Tuka says: don't need āgraha (insistence); the body-itself tells the anubhava (experience). No-insistence-anubhava-itself-tells.

[T]

For someone today

This abhang names the prīti-is-natural-not-taught register:

  1. Calf runs, cow runs after; prīti is in the anga, āyur-bhāva. Natural-prīti.

  2. Taught doesn't come for the cause; sūtra pulls others' minds. Teaching-fails.

  3. Abandoned can't be united; kicks back. Force-fails.

  4. No need āgraha; body itself tells anubhava. Anubhava-tells.

For today: the calf runs and the cow runs-after-it — prīti is in the anga, āyur-bhāva — natural-life-feeling; what is taught doesn't come for-the-cause — but the sūtra pulls others' minds (the bhakta's-prīti pulls others naturally); what has been abandoned can't be forcefully-united — it kicks-back*; no need for āgraha — the body-itself tells the anubhava.

This abhang is Tukaram's prīti-is-natural-and-anubhava-itself-tells register — one of the most-natural-bhakti statements. Compare 0742 bhāva-such-fruit-jāti-runs-to-jāti (Tuka's mudra); same natural-attraction but here applied to prīti through vatsa-dhēnu image. The sāngatasē angē anubhava (body itself tells the anubhava) is the precise no-need-to-argue claim.

मराठी: ही ओवी prīti-is-natural-not-taught register नाव सांगते:

  1. Vatsa-धेनु; प्रीति-अंगीं-natural. Natural-prīti.

  2. Taught-fails-cause; sūtra-others-mind. Teaching-fails.

  3. Abandoned-कीक्स-back. Force-fails.

  4. Āgraha-नको; अंगें-अनुभव-सांगतसे. Anubhava-tells.

आज: Vatsa runs आणि dhēnu त्याच्या-मागें — prīti anga-त, āyur-bhāva — natural-life-feeling; Taught kāraṇā-साठी येत-नाही — sūtra others' minds-pulls (bhakta-च्या-prīti naturally others-pulls); Abandoned forcefully-united-होत-नाही — kicks-back; Āgraha needed-नाही — body-itself tells the anubhava**.

Tukaram च-prīti-is-natural-and-anubhava-itself-tells-register — Most-natural-bhakti statements पैकी एक. 0742 bhāva-such-fruit-jāti-runs-to-jāti (Tuka mudra) compare; तीच natural-attraction पण इथे prīti-ला vatsa-dhēnu image-ने applied. Sāngatasē angē anubhava precise no-need-to-argue claim.

Where this applies

Bhakti

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